Indian equity benchmarks ended a volatile session largely unchanged on Tuesday as gains in auto, metal, and healthcare shares were offset by selling pressure in banking stocks.
The BSE Sensex finished just 31 points higher at 71,386 after rallying nearly 700 points intraday. Similarly, the NSE Nifty 50 index settled 32 points up at 21,545 after hitting a high of 21,724 earlier in the day.
Barring banking and FMCG stocks, most sectoral indices ended with gains. The Nifty Auto index surged nearly 2% while metal, healthcare, capital goods, and realty shares also witnessed strong buying interest.
In the Sensex pack, Tata Motors, Sun Pharma, Larsen & Toubro, Bharti Airtel, Tata Steel, and Mahindra & Mahindra were the prominent gainers. ITC, Nestle, Bajaj Finserv, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, and Titan Company closed with losses.
Broader markets were mixed as the midcap index ended flat while the smallcap index rose 0.3%.
Analysts said the tug of war between bulls and bears kept markets rangebound but the positive trend remains intact, especially in quality large-caps which saw sustained buying on dips.
After the recent rally, Nifty Bank and Financials coming under profit booking at higher levels is also on expected lines, they added. Traders should utilize the volatility to accumulate quality stocks for the long term.
In the previous session on Monday, the Sensex had plunged 671 points or 0.9% to end at 71,355 while the Nifty 50 shed 198 points or 0.9% to settle below the 21,500 mark. Investors would keep an eye on global cues and December quarter earnings for further direction.
